35. Competitor Profiles

The logic behind including competitor profile is very ordinary yet very powerful. In this information age, the upper hand is of a business which has the best access to information and competitor profile is the reflection of the same. The common technique for creating the competitor profile consists of the following aspects:

1) Background – What is the background of the company? Include details about other ventures and market domains of the company. Are they solely focused in your niche or are they working on a larger landscape? The history of their functioning, key people involved and trends in their growth chart.

2) Financial – Mention the P-E ratios of the companies, their dividend and profitability ratio. Look deep into the cash flow mechanism and do not forget to take note of the liquidity maintained by the company.

3) Products – How many products does your competition have in the same niche as yours? Mention their product balance and R&D efforts taken up over the years. Patents held by the company, the kind of brand positioning and loyalty they offer should also be included in this section.

4) Marketing – How does the company market is products and the policies adopted over the years.

5) Facilities and Personnel – What resources do they have in terms of man power and logistics should be included in this section.